Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Police are investigating after a Charlottetown, P.E.I. homeowner discovered a nearly naked stranger in his home. The homeowner was outside in his yard Tuesday evening and when he went back inside, discovered a man in his bathtub. Police said the stranger "appeared to be under the influence of something."After being discovered, the man left the house "wearing only shoes and underwear."Police are now searching for the man.

·Fake-Wooden iPad 2 sold for £110 to woman in McDonald's car park

·How-Man nabbed at airport with snakes in his pants

·Wow-Man in plane spots his home being burglarized

·Bad-Woman bitten by rattlesnake on busy street (video)

Nice-Woman's tattooed sexy torso goes viral

EDMONTON - Crysta Hammond is proud of her new giant tattoo. She endured 14 hours of pain to get the image of three fairies hugging each other etched permanently on the side of her torso, and came up with the design herself about 14 years ago.

But she never planned to reveal it -- and the side of her naked body -- to the online world. Moments after getting her new piece of art at FX Inc. in West Edmonton Mall, Hammond, a 32-year-old marketing coordinator for global trade shows, had her daughter snap a photo of the tattoo on her naked body. And so did the tattoo artist, who Hammond said claimed he would only use it for his personal portfolio. According to Hammond, the artist later friended her on Facebook, where he posted and tagged her in the photo he had taken with her head cropped out of the image. The identity of the naked woman had been revealed.

Hammond wasn't aware the nude image had been posted publicly until she received a call from her banker. It had been there for two days before it was removed at Hammond's request, but the damage had already been done. "I was absolutely mortified when this thing went on Facebook," said Hammond, who is connected to previous customers, co-workers, her boss and many other professionals on the popular social networking site. "It was a complete breach of my privacy. It was a private tattoo that isn't private anymore." The tattoo artist apologized to Hammond about posting the picture, writing to her: "I didn't mean any harm."

George, who didn't want to use his last name, owns the tattoo shop where the artist works and has never encountered such a problem in his 13 years of business. He said all customers sign a waiver that releases the rights to use pictures taken of their tattoos in any form they please. Hammond was no exception, said George, who offered his apologies, but warned others to read the fine print before they initial anything.

How-Man nabbed at airport with snakes in his pants

Never mind ants in your pants, what about snakes and tortoises? That's what authorities at Miami's international airport said they found inside the trousers of a passenger as he tried to board a flight for Brazil. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration said the man had seven exotic snakes and three tortoises wrapped in nylon bags that had been stuffed into his pants.

He was discovered as he went through a body scanner at one of the airport's security checkpoints on Thursday and arrested by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials for violating animal trafficking laws. Authorities declined to identify the man or offer any explanation for his botched attempt at reptile smuggling.

Wow-Man in plane spots his home being burglarized

BAY, Ark. — An Arkansas man who wanted to capture aerial photos of his home during his first plane ride instead helped catch two men burglarizing it. Steven Lynn said he could see the two taking items from his house."I looked down, and sure enough, there was a truck hooked onto a trailer, and guys were loading stuff up," Lynn told The Jonesboro Sun. "It didn't seem to faze them that we were buzzing over in an airplane; we got down pretty low."

Lynn called an uncle who lives nearby and 911. Craighead County Sheriff's deputy Phillip Wheaton said the two men unloaded the trailer and left the scene when the uncle arrived. But the pilot and Lynn's uncle followed them until they were stopped near Bay by Wheaton and two other officers.

Fake-Wooden iPad 2 sold for £110 to woman in McDonald's car park

Ms McDowell was approached by two men in a McDonald's car park in Spartanburg, South Carolina, who claimed to have bought the cutting-edge Apple tablets at a knock-down price. They showed Ms McDowell a brand new iPad as a show of good faith and even knocked $120 off the original price they quoted her of $300, well below the listed price for the gadget.

The duo then carried a Fed-Ex box to her car and she handed over her money without checking its contents, only to find she had been sold a piece of wood, with an Apple logo on the back.

Bad-Woman bitten by rattlesnake on busy street (video)

A California woman describes her excruciating pain after being bitten by a rattlesnake.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

BERLIN - Prostitutes in the German city of Bonn must carry a ticket purchased from a new parking meter-like machine while working the streets or face hefty fines from tax authorities in a scheme launched on Monday night. In Germany, ladies of the night pay income tax — the level of which varies from region to region — but compliance is difficult to enforce with women seeking business on the street. Germany’s first “sex tax meters,” from which prostitutes can purchase a ticket for 6 euros ($8.72) per night, will ensure the tax system is fairly implemented, a city spokeswoman said. “Inspectors will monitor compliance — not every evening but frequently,” the spokeswoman told Reuters. If caught without a valid ticket, offenders will first be reprimanded, and then faces fines and later even a ban. About 200 prostitutes work in Bonn. Due to protests from residents, city officials have limited the areas of operation to specific quarters. But critics say this has made it easier for prostitutes to ply their trade. The city has erected what officials call “consummation areas,” wooden parking garages where customers driving cars can retreat to with prostitutes.

When restaurant staff insisted a North Vancouver man pay for his meal, he held up a nearby gas station to cover the bill, RCMP said.Cory Henderson, 21, grabbed a late-night meal at Browns Social House in North Vancouver on Friday night, then skipped out on the $38 bill, according to police."When approached by staff for his actions he replied by telling them to call the police and that he would be at the Esso gas station next door," RCMP said in police press release.Moments later, cops received an alarm that the gas station was being held up. "The same male allegedly held a screwdriver to the employee's neck and robbed the gas station of an undisclosed amount of money. The suspect then returned to Browns restaurant and paid the unpaid bill with the just-stolen money," cops said in the release.Henderson now stands charged with robbery, fraudulently obtaining good, beverage and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. "Fortunately no one was injured in this most unusual robbery," said Cpl. Richard De Jong, "It is not every day a criminal will tell a victim what his next move will be and then go and just do it."

How-Juror caught trying to 'friend' female defendant

A 22-year-old male juror pleaded guilty to trying to 'friend' the female defendant in his case, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Instead of accepting his advances, the woman told her lawyer, who told the judge, who pounded the gavel.

It sounds like a case of eyes locking across a crowded courtroom, at least from the point of view of the juror. After the trial — involving a Tarrant County, Texas car wreck — recessed one day, he tried to link up with the defendant on Facebook. When she rebuffed his request, he suggested it was a case of mistaken identity, but that didn't hold water.According to the article, not only does Texas have jury instructions banning jurors from discussing trials on social media, this juror was given a copy of those instructions.

Why-Golfer mistaken for clown charged with golf-cart DWI

BATAVIA, N.Y. — A Massachusetts man whose colorful golf attire was briefly mistaken for a clown outfit has been charged in New York with driving a golf cart while drunk. The GeneseeCounty sheriff says his department received a report that someone dressed as a clown was operating a stolen golf cart on the streets of the western New York town of Batavia on Sunday night. Deputies eventually found 37-year-old James Straub of Stoneham, Mass., at a home in Batavia, The Batavian newspaper reported.

Lucky-Man, 86, impales eye with pruning shears

An 86-year-old Arizona man is expected to make a full recovery after he was accidentally impaled through his eye socket with pruning shears. On July 30, Leroy Luetscher dropped a pair of pruning shears, which landed in the ground point-side down. When he went to pick up the shears, he lost his balance and fell face down on the handle, the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson said in a release this week.

Eric Fisher was explaining to viewers of The Weather Channel how 'speechless' he was at the swarms of people out and about in the treacherous conditions when the disruption happened.'I'm pretty much speechless about how many people we've been seeing driving around, people like what you see behind me, which I apologise for,' he said as the pranksters splashed around behind him.

Monday, August 29, 2011

SHELTON, Conn. - A Connecticut woman is suing a neighbor accused of sexually abusing her horse.

Joan Flannery of Shelton has filed a lawsuit in Milford Superior Court seeking at least $5,000 from Marian Wegiel for emotional distress and the cost of surveillance cameras and locks.Wegiel was arrested in Flannery's corral last October when police responded to reports of a man inappropriately touching the horse. He was charged with animal cruelty and other crimes. He was placed on accelerated rehabilitation in May and the charges will be erased if he completes a two-year probation period.

The New Haven Register reports that Flannery's lawsuit claims that Wegiel is also responsible for the death of another horse that died of a vaginal infection.Wegiel's lawyer denies the allegations about the horse that died.

A FLIGHT from Moscow to London was turned back Friday when a drunken female passenger started performing erotic dances in front of shocked passengers. The 7am flight from Moscow's main Domodedovo airport did an about-turn 15 minutes after the take-off because of the 39-year-old woman's antics, Ria Novosti news agency reported.''The woman was in a state of insobriety, inconveniencing the passengers, taking off their glasses and dancing erotic dances,'' a spokesman for transport police was quoted as saying.The passenger was arrested upon landing and sent for a medical examination. The spokesman said she was ''in a good condition, but maybe a little drunk'', adding that she may have carried alcohol on board.The report did not specify which airline was operating the flight.

Crazy-Dad plans to call son Will.i.am after naming daughter Lady Gaga

A DAD plans to call his son Will.i.am – after naming his daughter Lady Gaga.Ian Clark, 36, has decided to name the child Tommy Will.i.am, after the US rapper, on the advice of his stepdaughter Maddie, four.Maddie last year helped come up with the name Meggie Maisie Lady Gaga for her half-sister. Ian’s partner, Melanie Robinson, 28, of Cramlington, Northumberland, who is four months pregnant, said: “I’m trying to convince him not to, but he’s done it once so I’m sure he will do it again.”

Surprise-ManchesterCity footballers gatecrash fans' wedding

Footy-mad Chris and Charlaine Booth had a dream wedding – when it was gatecrashed by their sky-blue ManchesterCity heroes. The pair, from Dukinfield, Manchester, had just married when the stars arrived at their hotel ahead of their game at Bolton.

Charlaine, 24, said: “We are both City fans and had a City-themed wedding. We had no idea they were staying. They were ace.”

How-Boy trapped in bus after driver forgets him

BERLIN - An eight-year-old boy was inadvertently locked inside a school bus for more than 12 hours on a steamy hot day in the eastern German town of Cottbus after the driver forgot about him, German daily Bild reported on Friday.The boy got on the bus at his home in the morning but did not show up for school. After dropping the children off, the bus driver returned to the bus company’s transport lot but did not notice that the one young passenger was still on board.“The bus was parked far away and wasn’t very visible from the office,” police spokesperson Torsten Wendt was quoted saying. It was only when his mother anxiously called the authorities that boy’s disappearance was noticed.After hours of searching, the boy was found on the bus later that night in reasonably good spirits even though the temperature had climbed to 30 degrees Celsius.He was found lying shirt-less on the floor under the seats. He even rationed his school-lunch so that it might last all night.

What-Extend alcohol sale hours to prevent minors drinking?

How do you curb underage drinking? Keep your liquor stores and bars open longer, according to a city in Florida.The mayor of Pembroke Pines proposed the change to the liquor-selling law at a recent council meeting. Currently, stores, bars and clubs can begin selling alcohol at 11 a.m. Stores have a cutoff time of 3 a.m., and clubs and bars can sell booze until 4 a.m.Mayor Frank Ortis's proposal, the Sun Sentinel reports, would allow establishments to sell alcohol between the current cut-off and start times as a reward for businesses for putting their employees through a class that would detail the dangers of underage drinking and train employees not to sell alcohol to minors, the newspaper reported.

The nearby community of Oakland Park passed a similar law in 2008, and according to compliance checks by the state, the number of businesses not selling alcohol to children went from 60% to 90% after the law came into force.

Wow-Cash of rain for Dutch driver

MAASTRICHT, Netherlands — The fantasy of seeing banknotes fluttering down from the sky came true for Dutch motorists after a package containing cash apparently fell from a bank transport truck and broke open. The incident triggered a dangerous scramble for the euro bills Monday on the busy A2 highway near Maastricht, as people parked cars on the road's shoulder and ran to scoop up loose notes.Police in the southern Dutch province of Limburg confirmed in their Twitter feed "it briefly rained bank bills."

Reporter Rudy Bouma told national broadcaster NOS he saw people grabbing handfuls of cash before hopping back into their cars and driving away.It was not clear how much cash was lost, or how it could have fallen from the truck.

Wow-9-year-old drives to school – almost (video)

A Louisiana boy tries to drive himself to school saying he didn't want to be late. KALB's Sherman Desselle reports.